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Assassins
Back to Doctor Byron Orpheus Our group has finally made it to the Ottoman Empire. We will soon reach our destination, but must first stop in Damascus to obtain supplies. We safely landed as the colonel has become much better at landings, and unsurprisingly yet another man recognized the colonel. Seems he has friends in every town even outside of Europa. They of course went off with Travers to drink. I had other pressing business here as a chapter of the golden dawn was in Damascus. I knew that certain parts of the order were looking for me, but I had no choice but to go. It is the only lead I have to find Dr. Blume. I ordered Trianna to stay behind, and set off alone for the order. Upon finding the order I was surprised to see it in shambles. The outside looked like it had recently been destroyed and was undergoing quite a bit of restorative work. I tentatively knocked upon the door and was greeted by one of the orders magicians. I was pleasantly surprised that I was not assaulted and greeted rather cordially. I was informed that Dr. Blume had indeed been to this chapter, and was escorted to the Library. Apparently Djinn had attacked the order, and was being repaired. Due to the timing of the attack, it seemed like Dr. Blume may have had a hand in it either directly, or indirectly. I was shown to the books he was studying. Dr. Blume seemed to be studying beginning lore, which is entirely unusual. My mentor would have no need for such books. I felt like he perhaps was mocking me when tucked away in the library, I noticed a book that he had checked out last. It was another beginners book, but on one page in tiny script I found a series of symbols. I recognized the handwriting as that of Dr. Blume. I am almost certain he left these for me to find. However I have no clue what they could mean. I quickly copied the scribbles, and marked out the letters from the book in case someone would follow us. I later met up with the colonel and the others and he had arranged lodging for us. I had a much-needed respite. Upon waking in the morning however we had found that a man had been murdered outside our in, and the police had blocked off the inn. No one in or out until the murder was resolved. Once more, all travel out of Damascus was forbidden. What was intended to be a brief stop it seemed would last much longer. I was able to get a close look at the victim and was baffled at what I saw. He was entirely burned from head to toe, but not by magic. It seemed he was not burned in a natural way though. It was most perplexing. I wanted to get a closer look but would not have the chance. We had to sneak out of the inn, for my companions believed that they intended to blame us for the murder. We managed to escape with the help of the colonel. He convinced them that I was his doctor and that he was a high-ranking British diplomat. We left Travers behind, seeing as he was comfortable drinking the days away at the bar. We now had to set out to solve this crime, as it was the only way we could leave Damascus. I had to examine the body, and find out how he had been murdered. I convinced the colonel to trick the morgue into letting us enter as independent British investigators. He is a master at the con, and was able to get us admittance without any confrontation. Upon examining the body, the colonel informed me of Greek fire. Seems a chemical formula of some sort was used. I animated the corpse with speaker of the dead, and the body began talking in Arabic. Curses, I forgot that no one could speak Arabic. I transcribed the best I could using a phonetic alphabet and we left. The colonel’s friend was shocked upon reading the text. He said that a shadowy group known, as assassins were involved. He cautioned us, as this group was incredibly deadly, secretive and powerful. He also said that it seems the victim was in the Jewish quarter of Damascus when he was murdered. We set out for the Jewish quarter, and spoke with many of the locals about the victim. Seems he was an advocate for immigrant’s rights, and was very unpopular with nationalists. The Nationalist movement would have benefited greatly from his death. I was determined to find the crime scene and vowed to look under every stone in the Jewish quarter if needed, but it also seemed that we were being followed. The colonel noticed as well, and stated he was going to confront them. Fearing the group known as the assassins were our pursuers, I hid nearby. The colonel confronted our followers, and naturally a fight ensued. While they were skilled, the colonel, Ting Wu, and Verdie were able to slowly wear them down. I sprung out at an opportune moment and deeply wounded one of the assailants with my sword cane. The rest began to flee. We noticed that a dagger with a curious insignia had been dropped by one of the men. I was certain they were assassins, but I was also certain that we were very close to locating were the victim was murdered, and that they were acting out of desperation. Several hours later we finally managed to locate the crime scene. I noticed the familiar burn marks on the street outside an abandoned synagogue. We entered and were able to locate precisely were the murder had happened. Seems he was stabbed first and then drug out into the street and set on fire. The Colonel and Ting Wu also located a secret passage out of the synagogue, but it was blocked with a large granite slab. I attempted to break the locking mechanism with my sword cane, but alas, my sword cane was shattered. Ting Wu then turned the stone around the lock to sand, and Verdie was able to disable the lock. We entered the sewers, and I noticed a chemical smell. The colonel was about to light a torch, but I stopped him. We were standing in trace amounts of Greek fire. Seems it was leaking into the sewers from somewhere. Ting Wu and I used our light spells, and Verdie had a fascinating electric torch. We traveled the sewers for quite some time when we finally noticed the source of the chemical. We found a secret underground storehouse of Greek fire. I was certain we had enough evidence to link the assassin to this crime and we summoned the authorities. We took the policemen to the synagogue, and upon entering were greeted with a most horrifying sight. A large Djinn had been released, and it grabbed one of the fleeing assassins and ate him bones and all. I immediately began drawing energy, while my companions backed away from the Djinn. Verdie however charged past the djinn and began attacking a weak spot in the wall. We all watched in hope as the wall came tumbling down on the Djinn. However it was only temporarily stunned. Then Colonel Gentleman transformed into a dragon. He transformed into a dragon…. I don’t quite know how to express the shock of this so I am just stating it bluntly. He is a dragon. The dragon colonel was able to easily dispatch the djin, and then he changed back as if nothing serious had happened. I still respect the colonel, and am fascinated that he is of the dragon race, but would have appreciated him coming forward with this sooner. Non-the less, I look forward to working with him further if only to gain more knowledge of this fascinating species. My other companions did not seem to be as benevolent as I to put it mildly. I am still not useful in a fight without a sword, and in an attempt to be more versatile, will continue to work on my fisticuffs.